“If I acknowledged Thee as Prophet of God I
should not have made war on thee; write simply thy
name and the name of thy father.”

And so the treaty was drawn up. The traditional
text of it is simple and clear, and the only point
requiring comment is the clause providing for the
treatment of those who go over to Islam and those of
the Believers who rejoin the Kureisch. Mahomet
was sure enough of himself and his magnetism to allow
the clause to stand, which allowed any backslider full
permission to return to Mecca. He knew there would
not be many, who having come under the spell of Islam
would return again to idolatry. The text of the
treaty stood substantially in these terms:

“In thy Name, O God! These are the conditions
of peace between Mahomet, son of Abdallah and Suheil,
son of Amr. War shall be suspended for ten years.
Whosoever wisheth to join Mahomet or enter into treaty
with him shall have liberty to do so; and likewise
whoever wisheth to join the Kureisch or enter into
treaty with them. If one goeth over to Mahomet
without permission of his guardian he shall be sent
back to his guardian; but should any of the followers
of Mahomet return to the Kureisch they shall not be
sent back. Mahomet shall retire this year without
entering the city. In the coming year Mahomet
may visit Mecca, he and his followers, for three days,
during which the Kureisch shall retire and leave the
city to them. But they may not enter it with any
weapons save those of the traveller, namely, to each
a sheathed sword.”

After the solemn pledging of the treaty Mahomet sacrificed
his victims, shaved his head and changed his raiment,
as a symbol of the completed ceremonial in spirit,
if not in fact, and ordered the immediate withdrawal
to Medina. His followers were crestfallen, for
they had been led to expect his speedy entry into
Mecca, and they were disappointed too because their
warlike desires had been curbed to stifling point.
But the Prophet was firm, and promised them fighting
in plenty as soon as they should have reached Medina
again. So the host moved back to its city of
origin, fortified by the treaty with its hitherto implacable
foes, and exulting in the promise that next year the
sacred ceremonies would be accomplished by all true
Believers.

The depression that at first seized his followers
at the conclusion of their enterprise found no reflex
in the mind of Mahomet. He was well aware of
the significance of the transaction. In the Kuran
the episode has a sura inspired directly by it and
entitled “Victory,” the burden of which
is the goodness of God upon the occasion of the Prophet’s
pilgrimage to Hodeibia.

“In truth they who plighted fealty to thee really
plighted fealty to God; the hand of God was over their
hands! Whoever, therefore, shall break his oath
shall only break it to his own hurt; but whoever shall
be true to his engagements with God, He will give
him a great reward.”